1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an Interactive control apparatus using a remote control signal between a computer and an electric home appliance so as to control the electric home appliance using a remote control signal transmitted by an application loaded into the computer, meanwhile to control the computer using a remote control signal transmitted by the electric home appliance.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there has been a method of remotely operating an electric home appliance only by allowing a remote controller to directly perform a remote control operation of the electric home appliance such as an IR (infrared) remote control transmitter, a learning remote controller, a preset remote controller, etc.
However, there has recently been an interface standard called an HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) for use in connecting a TV (television) to an AV (audio/video) equipment unit.
Since the HDMI standards are capable of inputting/outputting an electric home appliance control signal for CEC (consumer electric control) as well as video and audio, it is considered that a connection can be easily made and easy processing can be performed using only one cable.
FIG. 1 shows the concept of connecting a plurality of electric home appliances via one cable of the conventional HDMI standards. As shown in FIG. 1, a television 1, a hard disk recorder 2, and another AV equipment unit 3 are serially connected via one cable 4 of the HDMI standards. In FIG. 1, a serial connection is made, but a parallel connection can also be realized.
As a control device of the HDMI standards, a control device of what is called HDMI-CEC link standards, that is, a small device build on one chip including an AV control circuit and an electric home appliance control circuit, is loaded into an electric home appliance such as a television, an HD (hard disk) recorder, a stereo amplifier, etc.
Then, using the control of the HDMI-CEC link standards loaded into another electric home appliance, a menu is called on the television screen by the remote control operation of a television and the menu is sequentially selected, and a video recorder connected to the television can be controlled.
Additionally, an information processing device has been developed by considering the difference in use mode depending on the distance between a television and a PC (personal computer) such that an image memory controller and an interlaced scanning image memory controller can be provided as independent units to separate a controller for a television from a controller for a PC, and the switching control can be performed by an operation of the PC (for example, patent document 1).
In addition, there is a TV tuner control system disclosed as connecting a TV tuner provided with a remote control photoreceiving unit to a PC, providing a remote control transmitter, issuing an instruction to the TV tuner through the remote control photoreceiving unit using a control light signal from the PC or a control light signal from the remote control transmitter, and controlling a TV image displayed on the display unit of the PC by the microcomputer provided for the TV tuner, thereby reducing the operation buttons from the TV tuner.
In the TV tuner control system, an erroneous operation can be prevented by providing microcomputer control for the TV tuner even when the control light signal from the PC and the control light signal from the remote control transmitter are simultaneously transmitted (for example, patent document 2).
Furthermore, there is a PC system disclosed as using an available TV channel for a user who is not familiar with an operation of a PC and the OS (operating system), allowing the PC to activate an arbitrary application from the remote controller of a TV, switching an operation of the application by the PC to a broadcast signal corresponding to an available channel of the TV and outputting it to the TV (for example, patent document 3).
However, the information processing device according to the patent document 1 can switch the switching control of the screen of the TV monitor in cooperation with an event of the PC, but the PC cannot be controlled from the monitor.
That is, the system cannot perform interactive communications, and is not in accordance with the HDMI-CEC link standards. In addition, while the TV is operated by the PC, the PC cannot turn on or off the TV by transmitting a control signal from the PC.
Furthermore, the TV tuner control system according to the patent document 2 is a method of controlling a TV tuner for displaying a TV image on the monitor screen provided for the PC, and the PC cannot control the TV provided separate from the PC.
In addition, PC cannot be controlled from the TV monitor. That is, the system is not in accordance with the HDMI-CEC link standards.
The PC system according to the patent document 3 only displays an image of the application to be displayed on the monitor screen of the PC on the TV monitor screen for substitute using an available channel of the TV.
That is, the system does not control the operation of the PC of switching the actual channel of the PC. The PC system according to the patent document 3 is not in accordance with the HDMI-CEC link standards.
A small control device of the HDMI-CEC link standards built on one chip and loaded into an electric home appliance is only a practical device operated using a part of a processing function in the range determined by the HDMI-CEC link standards, operates with an electric home appliance of the same manufacturer, but does not always operate with an electric home appliance of another manufacturer.
Therefore, different standards and functions are practically applied by various manufacturers of electric home appliances, and it is not convenient in practical use.
Since a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC) is provided with a CPU (central processing unit) having a high level calculating capability, it is expected to be able to control electric home appliances.
However, at present, a platform as an environment of the software and hardware as a base of a PC system can only control audio and video (AV control), and there has no personal computer provided with a controller for controlling electric home appliances.
If the above-mentioned one-chip HDMI-CEC is incorporated into a PC, the PC can logically control an electric home appliance.
However, since the current PC is provided with a circuit having the function of performing AV control, even if incorporating an HDMI-CEC chip, the former function in an AV control function and an electric home appliance control function become a redundant function for PC.
Therefore, the double loading of similar functions requires a laborious implementation of software for controlling the HDMI-CEC chip, and its operation is not so simple.
In the part of AV control function as a redundant function for the PC, the HDMI-CEC chip is uneconomical.
Furthermore, using an HDMI-CEC chip is to use an HDMI-CEC chip as is, and there is no room for improvement.
The merit of a PC resides in the flexibility of a system whose application can be easily improved or exchanged. When an HDMI-CEC chip is used in a PC, the function of the HDMI-CEC cannot be improved, and the flexibility is degenerated.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Published Patent Application No. H10-133636
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Published Patent Application No. H9-311750
[Patent Document 3] Japanese Published Patent Application No. H11-015590